Rowan Cox Transitions to New Role within Atwea College

Atwea College, a leading community-based not-for-profit education and training provider, announces a strategic leadership transition as Rowan Cox, current Chief Executive Officer, assumes a new role within the organisation.

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Since Rowan’s appointment as General Manager in 2013 and CEO in 2016, she has demonstrated exceptional leadership, guiding Atwea through industry and funding changes, compliance regulations as well as successfully operating throughout the Covid era. Under her guidance, the company has achieved significant growth and expanded its presence in the Hunter and Mid North Coast.

Rowan will be transitioning to the Principal role, of the very successful Alesco Secondary College within Atwea, effective January 2024. In this new capacity, she will take leadership of the school, and focus on continuing to support the educational needs of school students across the region, as Alesco continues to offer more opportunities to access an Alesco Campus. As one of the co-founders of the Alesco model, Rowan’s intrinsic knowledge of the school and the needs of students will be invaluable.

“We are thrilled to announce Rowan’s transition to Principal for Alesco Secondary College. She has been instrumental in driving our success and positioning us as a leader in the alternative education and vocational training industry. We are confident that her expertise and strategic vision will continue to contribute to the growth and success of our organisation in her new capacity,” said Jane McConville, Chairperson of Atwea College’s Board of Directors.

The Board of Directors has initiated a search for a new CEO to lead Atwea College into its next phase of growth and innovation. During this transition period, Rowan Cox will continue to support both Atwea and Alesco and looks forward to onboarding and supporting the next CEO.

Rowan expressed gratitude for the support and collaboration with Atwea’s and Alesco’s dedicated teams and stated, “I am beyond excited to be able to focus energy and attention, my capabilities, and skills to improve the capacity of Alesco to provide learning opportunities that enhance people’s lives and unlock their potential. I know the next CEO of Atwea will take the organisation into the future with clear vision and strong leadership to ensure success continues to follow where they lead”.

About Atwea College:

Atwea has a long and proud history as the leading provider of community-based adult learning in the Hunter Region. Atwea is a public company limited by guarantee. It is an independent non-profit community-based organisation whose aim is to promote and provide educational opportunities for the communities in which it exists. Atwea is among the larger providers of community-based adult learning in NSW and when Government Contract Training, Business and Industry Training, Youth Programs including the very successful secondary school model of Alesco Senior College are added – this not only makes Atwea one of the largest but also one of the most diverse training providers in NSW.

While some of our income is generated from the general community, we also successfully tender for government-funded and private-sector business-funded courses and programs. Atwea is committed to ensuring training is available to all sectors of the community, including business operators and corporate clients. Atwea offers between 250 and 350 courses each year.

No matter who the client is, we aim to provide a ‘value-for-investment’ learning experience. Atwea makes a substantial contribution not just to the local economy but more importantly to the wellbeing of individuals within the community. Be it through skill enhancement, personal development, or increased self-esteem, Atwea’s objective of being a conduit through which individuals unlock their potential is being realised every day. We hope that by contributing to the development of individuals, Atwea in turns allows those individuals to contribute fully to their community and society in general.

About Alesco Secondary College:

Alesco Secondary College is a registered and accredited Independent Non Government Secondary School which offers a personalised and flexible learning environment that caters to individual student needs, in relatively small classes, where openness, non-threatening and less formal approaches are the cornerstones of learning. Alesco promotes the importance of wellbeing and learning in balance to achieve success for each individual student. Alesco’s unique school model and demonstrated success have firmly solidified its place in the alternative school education space. Many other schools like Alesco now operate in NSW and Victoria, but it all started right here in Newcastle. Campuses are located across the region servicing Newcastle areas (Cooks Hill Campus), Cessnock region (Abermain Campus), Port Stephens peninsula (Tomaree Campus), Foster/Tuncurry (Coast Campus), west Lake Macquarie (Northlakes Campus), Raymond Terrace (Terrace Campus), and East Lake Macquarie (Charlestown campus).